Older men turn blind eye to prostate signs

Just one-third of men know what their prostate does and many would look for excuses not to visit a doctor if they thought there might be something wrong with it, according to a new poll.

The study by the Prostate Cancer Charity found that many men would ignore frequent night-time urination, which is a common symptom of poor prostate health.

Nearly one in three men over the age of 45 thought it was normal to urinate frequently during the night at their age, and more than a quarter admitted that they would be unlikely to visit a doctor because of the difficulty getting an appointment.

More than one in five (22%) also said that they would be afraid that it might be prostate cancer, while 16% admitted that they were put off by the possibility of a rectal examination.

Chief executive John Neate said: “We certainly don’t want men to panic about getting prostate cancer, but we do want far more men to be aware of their risks of this disease and their health in general.”